'Tough to spin an outcome of a trial from prison': Former prosecutor on Trump conviction
Donald Trump's spin machine might be broken if he's convicted in the so-called "hush money" criminal trial he's facing next month.
The former president has so far been able to turn his criminal and civil cases into cash from his followers, and has also benefited from a boost in the polls from ultra-conservatives in the GOP primary. But there's a chance that could all change if Trump is convicted at his upcoming trial for paying off porn star Stormy Daniels to hide an affair, and disguising the payments as legal fees.
Former federal prosecutor Joyce Vance appeared on MSNBC's Alex Witt Reports Sunday to discuss Trump's legal issues.
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The host said she was told that "Trump is not going to try to delay this trial because he can spin any outcome to his benefit out on the campaign trail." She then asked Vance, "Do you agree with that?"
"Well, it's tough to spin the outcome of a trial from prison. And of course we don't know whether the judge would be inclined to take him straight into custody if he is convicted or if he would get an appeal bond, but I suppose that's one dynamic there."
She added that it's "one thing to spin a case before it's tried," but that "it's an entirely different thing after the fact."
"There will be reporting, there will be transcripts of testimony from witnesses, and there will be a jury of Donald Trump's peers who will pass judgment on whether he is guilty or not," Vance explained. "We know that jury verdicts carry great weight with the public, there are polls where a number of Republican and independent voters have said they would be turned off from voting for the former president if he is convicted in a case, so watch Trump to say that this case is insignificant, that is an important, that it's a witch hunt."
She continued:
"The reality is this is a case about election interference and Donald Trump trying to keep key facts away from American voters on the eve of an election. I think the outcome of this case if there's a conviction will be monumental and Donald Trump will have a lot of trouble spinning it away."